SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Graphics chipmaker Nvidia Corp posted a wider-than-expected quarterly loss on Tuesday, as revenue plunged 60 percent on weak demand from PC makers, sending its shares down 7 percent.
NVIDIA (NVDA.NQ)posted a net loss of $147.6 million, or 27 cents a share, for its fiscal fourth quarter ended January 25, compared with a net profit of $257 million, or 42 cents a share, in the year-ago period.
The company's gross profit margin was 29.4 percent of revenue in the fourth quarter, compared with 41 percent in the third quarter.
Revenue tumbled to $481.1 million from $1.2 billion, below Wall Street's view of $491.3 million, according to Reuters Estimates.
Excluding special items, Nvidia's loss per share was 18 cents, wider than the average analyst forecast of 11 cents loss per share.
Nvidia warned investors in January that sales in the quarter would be significantly weaker than its initial expectations, due to weak demand for personal computers, which use its graphics processors, and inventory reductions among its customers.
"What we need to know now is what management plans on doing going forward to correct the situation," said Wedbush Morgan Securities analyst Patrick Wang.
Among the key concerns for investors, Wang said, was the deterioration in Nvidia's profit margin.
Nvidia shares fell 7.2 percent to $8.65 in after-hours trading.
(Reporting by Alexei Oreskovic; Editing by Bernard Orr and Andre Grenon)
